Historical & Contextual Studies in Fashion Essay - 1

Historical & Contextual Studies in Fashion - Essay Example For women, the corset was worn to support the breasts and to develop a curved figure, narrowing the waist. In 1500s, the corset was introduced in France by Catherine de Medici. At that time, the corset was worn as an undergarment. It was a tight elongated bodice worn by Women of the French court in the 16th century (Davies, 1982). In this period, the women of the French court embraced the corset because it was considered as a necessary garment for the beauty of a female figure (Tortora and Eubank, 1989). It was worn with a farthingale in order to hold out the skirt and form a stiff cone. The corsets in this historical context also turned the upper part of a human torso into an inverted cone shape (V&A, 2015). The corset was also made of shoulder strap and had flaps at the waist. In order to form a good shape for the woman body, the corset flattened the bust. As a result, it pushed up the breasts. The corsets were made of layered fabric fastened with glue and tightly laced (Tortora and Eubank, 1989). A busk was used to stiffen the forefront of the bodice. It was made of wood, metal, whalebone, ivory or metal (V&A, 2015). The steel busk of the corset was spoon-shaped, and was wider at the bottom than at the top in order to exert pressure on the abdomen (Davies, 1982). This shape made the corset wearable and more restricting in order to tighten the waist. During the Victorian era, the busk was made of steel. As fashion changed, the corset also changed. In 1870s, the corset changed it shape, becoming longer so that it can cause the fashionable long and slender silhouette (Takeda and Spilker, 2010). The corsets also became more rigid in order to hide the layers of the underwear. They were heavily boned, and were cut from different pieces and toughened with leather. Whalebone was used because it was strong and flexible, achieving the shape of the corset and the body